Thursday, September 8, 2011

Bookstore Magic

Will it fade?
What has happened to the American bookstore? The cozy yet slightly musty place where a reader could wander among the great storytellers of our time and faintly hear them calling from the shelves, “Read me! I’m a heartbreaking love story! Read me, I’ll tell you the history of the Great War! ...”

It grew from a dimly lit space to a high-ceilinged warehouse to a coffee-smelling, couch-laden superstore to a multipurpose entertainment outlet. The old bookstores were swallowed by chains. Packaging, bundling, synergizing and the tantalization of profits became the principles. Actual books in these places seemed to be an afterthought, nudged aside by videos, calendars, music and electronics.

But Borders? Surely Borders was safe, right? Didn’t we have a soft spot for them? Anyone who ever made that pilgrimage to Ann Arbor on a Sunday afternoon, anyone who ever lost track of the hours while cooing at the sheer enormity of the written word, would insist, absolutely and without hesitation, that Borders, like mankind, would somehow survive.

Instead, we are once again reminded that no matter how lovely the casing, how beautiful the print, how fetching the binding or how stunning the cover, business is still business.

And books are a tough business.(Read entire article.)
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3 comments:

Gabriela Delworth - Instructional Designer said...

Hello,

Well, I totally get your point. Bookstores went from cozy to superstores. But...in my case I am happy to have space enough for a crafty book signing event.
I really wish you lived closer to those book stores...and join me!


Gabriela

Victoria said...

Good afternoon, Mrs. Vidal!

I just wanted to let you know that I linked to this post on my blog: http://raindropsandmoonlight.blogspot.com/

The disappearance of bookstores really saddens me. What is this country coming to?!

- Victoria

elena maria vidal said...

Gabriela, I love bookstores, large and small. I wish I lived closer, too!

Thank you very much, Victoria!